Learning machine system and methodology

ABSTRACT

An early-learning system and method wherein its systemic form features a manually learner-manipulable structure including (a) at least one pair of adjacent, operatively associated, relatively shiftable, learning-information carriers organized, with respect to one another, as dedicated foreground and background carriers having a defined condition of permitted, relative-shifting motion, and (b) visual, partial-learning-element units carried by each of these carriers, each unit which is carried by one of the carriers, through an act involving relative shifting of the two carriers, being combinable visually and selectively with at least one such unit which is carried by the other carrier, thus to form a visual, full-learning element.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/733,578, filed Nov. 4, 2005, for “Learning Machine System and Methodology”. The entire disclosure content of that prior-filed provisional application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention pertains to a learning machine system and methodology which are useable in a number of fields of learning, such as early reading learning, early number learning, early familiar-object learning, early creature-type learning, and early learning involving other subjects which will be mentioned hereinbelow. In particular, the invention relates to such a learning machine system, and to an associated methodology, which utilize selective relative motion between two or more partial-learning-element units, such as portions of a simple word, or of another object, that may be brought together for full-formation completeness in visual or tactile (regarding Braille) paired juxtaposition, with encouragement given to a learner, in the illustrative case of words, to speak correctly the assembled word which has thus become formed. Two properly “brought-together” partial-learning-element units herein are said to form what is referred to as a full-learning element.

A preferred embodiment and manner of practicing the invention are described herein, for illustration purposes, in conjunction with early learning by young children of the various “short” sounds of the basic vowels in the English language, with these vowels being presented in the contexts of formable, simple, three-letter words which are combined with appropriate consonants. This embodiment of the invention may be designed to work collaboratively with other early-learning tools, such as with basic reading books, which may include supportive content directly related to use of the present invention.

This and all embodiments of the invention may be implemented either in a fully mechanical manner, or in a substantially fully virtual, computer-based manner. Both of these manners are illustrated and described herein, with principal focus being placed upon a manual implementation of the invention which has been found to be especially useful.

An interesting feature of the invention, which results from the way in which the structural aspect of it is configured and utilized, is that the invention provides young learners with elements of surprise and mystery, coupled with just plain fun, in the putting of the system “through its paces”—all in the context of providing such learners with a solid and very unique findamental learning experience.

The various important features and advantages which are offered by the present invention will become more fully apparent now as the description of the invention which follows below is read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, are photocopy images of an actual, prototype, mechanical, system device, or machine, made in accordance with a preferred mechanical embodiment of the present invention, designed to teach young learners both the short-form pronunciations of the five English vowels, and also to teach those pronunciations in the contexts of a collection of basic three-letter words suitable for early reading learning.

FIG. 9 illustrates six different creatures in the forms of familiar animals, divided portions of which may be utilized by bringing them together (into proper juxtaposition) in one form of practice of the present invention to teach early creature-recognition learning.

FIG. 10 is a simplified, high-level, block/schematic diagram generally illustrating an electronic, computer-based implementation of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The teaching of young learners in an early-learning mode directed at word and vowel recognition and reading, accompanied by correct pronunciation, has been approached over the years in a number of progressively more sophisticated ways. The embodiment of the invention in mechanical form which is pictured, for illustration purposes herein, in FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, is designed, in the contexts of a selected plurality of three-letter words, to teach correct pronunciation of what are known as the short forms, or sounds, of the five, basic English vowels, presented, ultimately, to an early learner in the forms of simple, three-letter words, including various consonants linked to these vowels.

It should be understood at the outset that the principles of the present invention, while specifically illustrated in these eight figures just-mentioned in the specialized context of vowel-sound learning as just mentioned, may readily be employed, and those generally skilled in the art will recognize this, in a very wide variety of early-learning subject areas. Representative areas include visual vowel learning, visual word and/or vowel learning, visual Arabic-number and/or Braille-number learning, visual familiar-shape shape learning, visual familiar-creative learning, and visual familiar-object learning.

Accordingly, it should be understood, as one reads the now-following disclosure and description of this invention, that the specific topical illustration chosen for explaining the invention herein should be interpreted to be a disclosure also of how the features of the invention may be used in other learning fields.

Further, and as was mentioned above herein with regard to the descriptions of the several drawing figures, FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, illustrate a very simple and useful mechanical, manually-manipulable systemic teaching structure, also called a mechanical moving-parts device, which has been found to work especially well with young children.

Looking now very specifically at the contents of FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, a manually-manipulable teaching machine, or learning machine, is illustrated generally at 20. In FIG. 1, machine 20 is shown in what will soon be understood to be a fully collapsed condition, ready for use. In the other seven figures, the same machine is shown in different states of use-adjustment which are representative of actual use “conditions” of this machine.

Machine 20, which will now be referred to herein simply as device 20, includes five pairs 22, 24 26, 28, 30 (shown bracketed) of substantially, parallel-planar, card-like, printed carriers of what are referred to herein as partial-leaming-elements units (printed on these carriers). Each pair of carriers includes, one in front of the other as viewed in FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, foreground and background carriers, such as foreground carriers 22 a, 24 a, 26 a, 28 a, 30 a in pairs 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, respectively, and background carriers 22 b, 24 b, 26 b, 28 b, 30 b in these same respective pairs of carriers. As will be evident from the description of device 20 given so far herein, the individual carriers in each pair of carriers, also referred to herein as a learning-information carriers, are provided with outwardly projecting manual-manipulation tabs, numbered 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 for carriers 22, 24, 26, 28, 30, respectively.

In the specific device 20 which is shown herein, and as briefly suggested just above, each of the mentioned carriers is conveniently formed of a thin and planar card-like structure to have the perimetral shape of a quadrant-sector of a circle, with each of these carriers having a different radial dimension, and with all of the carriers being pivoted to one another at 32 for relative angular (rotational) shifting, generally in the planes of FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, about an axis which is shown at 32 a—an axis which is substantially normal to the planes of these eight drawing figures. In the prototype device which has been photocopied to create FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, a ribbon 33 a extends through eyelets 33 b which are anchored near the “radial centers” of the carrier cards to define pivot axis 32 a. Looseness in this ribbon accounts for the slight non-axial-alignment of these eyelets, and thus accounts for a slight visual imprecision in these figures regarding in the intended all-carrier “pivoted alignment” with axis 32 a.

In terms of radial dimensions, background carrier 22 b has the largest radial dimension, and foreground carrier 30 a the smallest such dimension. This radial-dimensional differentiation especially allows for easy visibility of each of the individual carriers, and also offers the opportunity for the curving perimeter portions of the carriers, where these portions extend radially beyond the counterpart positions in the immediate foreground-neighbor carriers, to be decorated interestingly, such as with a rainbow of colors especially appealing to young learners.

In the condition of device 20 which is shown in FIG. 1, and as was suggested earlier herein, this device is shown here in what can be thought of as being a fully collapsed condition, with the respective foreground and background carriers in each pair of carriers lying angularly relative to one another with their radially extending edges (see the adjacent left and right sides of FIG. 1) substantially aligned. In this condition of these carriers, from which “fanning out” of the carriers will take place during use of the device, as will be explained, the outwardly projecting manipulation tabs associated with each pair of carriers are slightly angularly offset with respect to one another, as can clearly be seen in FIG. 1.

As was also mentioned earlier herein, the specific implementation of device 20 herein is aimed at teaching, inter alia, the correct pronunciations of the so-called short forms of the classically recognized five English vowels. With this in mind, suitably printed on the respective, outwardly projecting tabs associated with the foreground carriers in each of the five pairs of carriers are two-letter presentations employing these vowels with the single concluding consonant “t” to show immediately to a young learner an associative use of the vowel with a consonant in a setting where the vowel's short-form pronunciation is the correct pronunciation. These foreground tab markings also reflect, for the respective, associated pairs of carriers, the specific, single, partial-learning-element units which fixedly associated with the foreground carriers in those associated pairs of carriers. In other words, in the embodiment of the invention now being described, each foreground carrier has been designed to be associated with, and thus to carry, a single partial-learning-element unit.

Accordingly, and as illustrated for device 20, the single, partial-learning-element units associated respectively with foreground carriers 22 a, 24 a, 26 a, 28 a and 30 a are “at”, “et”, “ot”, “it” and “ut”. Not only are these single, partial-learning element units printed on the tabs associated with the just-mentioned foreground carriers, they are also printed radially inwardly on the faces of the foreground carriers, immediately to one side of a single rectangular aperture, or window, which is provided for exposing what is referred to herein as a predefined path of exposure —an arc of a circle — associated with the relevant background carrier. These apertured foreground carriers, as will be seen, act as shutters with respect to their associated background carriers.

In each of FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, herein, such an aperture, or window, is shown at 34 in foreground carrier 30 a. Window 34 is associated with a predefined path of exposure 36 which exists on, and in the association with, background carrier 30 b. In FIG. 2, a similar aperture 38 is shown in foreground carrier 26 a, which aperture is associated with a predefined path of exposure 40 existing on, and in association with, background carrier 26 b. Aperture 38 and path 40 are also seen in FIGS. 3 and 4. In FIG. 5, relative rotational shifting has taken place between foreground carrier 26 a and background carrier 26 b in a manner whereby substantially the entirety of path 40 is made visible. In FIGS. 6, 7 and 8, a similar co-associated aperture 42 and predefined path of exposure 44 are illustrated for foreground and background carriers 22 a, 22 b, respectively.

It should be understood that these mentioned predefined paths of exposure, which form approximate 90° arcs of a circle in device 20 herein, are not actually visibly presented as such on the faces of the five background carriers. Rather, they define arcuate lines along which other elements of the invention are located, as will now be described.

Accordingly, provided in spaced relationship on and along each of the predefined paths of exposure invisibly formed on and with respect to the several background carriers, there is a distribution of spaced consonants which may be made to appear in the associated foreground-carrier windows. These distributed consonants are also refered to herein as partial-learning-element units. In each of FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, the relative angular positions which exist between foreground and background carriers 30 a, 30 b, respectively, are such that the consonant “c”, which is included along path 36 on background carrier 30 b, appears through window 34 in foreground carrier 30 a to form, visually and selectively, with the letters “ut”, the three-letter word “cut” which is referred to herein as a full-learning element. This full-learning element is thus brought into visual being by the selective juxtaposition of two partial-learming-element units through rotational relative manual manipulation of carriers 30 a, 30 b.

In FIG. 2, the consonant “h”, which is positioned on background carrier 26 b along path 40, is seen to appear through window 38 in foreground carrier 26 a to form the three-letter letter word “hot” (a full-learning element) with the letters “ot” which appear on foreground carrier 26 a immediately next to window 38.

Turning attention for a moment specifically to FIGS. 3 and 4, in FIG. 3, foreground carrier 26 a is seen to have been adjusted counter-clockwise relative to background carrier 26 b through an angle α₁ in the direction of arrow 46, and specifically so adjusted in such a fashion that nothing appears, that is, no consonant (partial-learning-element unit) appears, through window 38. Put another way, the next paired juxtaposition of two partial-learning-element units which will occur with continued counter-clockwise adjustment of foreground carrier 26a is not pre-evident in the condition of things shown in FIG. 3. In FIG. 4, with further counter-clockwise shifting of foreground carrier 26 a relative to background carrier 26 b, as indicated by arrow 48, an angular displacement α₂ has been created between these foreground and background carriers. In this new angular displacement between these two carriers, the consonant “t” which is included on and along path 40, now appears through window 38 to form another three-letter word “tot” with the letters “ot” which appear on foreground carrier 26 a.

One can thus see, by looking at the sequence of positions thus illustrated for carriers 26 a, 26 b, that, as these two carrier have been shifted relative to one another, the particular full-learning element word which appears in device 20 has changed from “hot” to “tot”, with the change “passing through” a condition (FIG. 3) wherein no background consonant along path 40 appears through window 38.

FIG. 5 in the drawings has been prepared, as previously mentioned, to show substantially the entirety of path 40 which is associated with background carrier 26 b. In this figure, one can see that spatially distributed along path 40 are seven different consonants which can be made to appear in foreground window 38 to form several different words with the letters “ot” carried on foreground carrier 26 a.

A similar sequence of full-learning element formations is illustrated in FIGS. 6-8, inclusive, with respect to there-illustrated clockwise shifting of foreground carrier 22 a relative to background carrier 22 b. In FIG. 6 the relative angular disposition of carriers 22 a, 22 b is such that the consonant “m” lying along path 44 is exposed through window 42 to form the word “mat” along with the partial-learning-element unit which appears immediately next to window 42 in carrier 22 a. In FIG. 7 shifting has taken place to create an angular displacement α₃ between carriers 22 a, 22 b, and in this circumstance, no background consonant appears in window 42. In FIG. 8, an angular displacement α₄ has been created between carriers 22 a, 22 b, and in this condition of these two carriers, the background consonant “s” which lies along path 44 appears in window 42 to form the word “sat” along with the partial-learning-element “at”.

One can thus see that, with device 20 constructed as described herein, there are five different pairs of relatively shiftable foreground and background carriers pivoted for swinging relative to one another to create different conditions of foreground and background alignment, whereby letters appear through aperture windows to form words based upon the vowels associated with the carriers. With regard to manipulations performed between two, associated, foreground and background carriers, only a single background-carrier consonant appears at any given time to combine with machine-associated associated foreground carrier letters. This behavior of device 20 is what produces the above-mentioned condition of non-pre-evidence associated with relative shifting of associated carriers between successive conditions of paired juxtaposition of two partial-learning-element units.

There is thus a certain element of surprise and mystery offered by device 20 with regard to what will next appear as a fully formed word. Learning device 20 also offers elements of entertainment as the various carriers are adjusted relative to one another. While it is not necessary that a device generally formed like device 20 should have carriers that have different respective radial dimensions (in a pivoted-carrier situation), such radial differentiation, as mentioned earlier herein, offers the opportunity to decorate the surfaces of the various carriers in numerous ways, for example in a rainbow of colors, to present a young learner with a very visually-appealing device for manipulation.

As was also mentioned earlier herein, the learning device of this invention may be designed to operate in a number of different fields of learning. For example, numbers and number sequences, as well as other kinds of word combinations than those described so far herein, may be designed into such a device. Additionally, a foreground carrier might be designed to have more than a single exposure aperture window, and the associated background carrier might be made to have an appropriate different number of predefined paths of exposure.

Further, the device of this invention could well be used to teach the proper formations of familiar objects and creatures, such as familiar animals, like those shown representatively in FIG. 9 in the drawings. In this figure, two of the illustrated animals, namely a monkey and an elephant, are shown with shaded and unshaded portions. Such animal portions might be presented in a device like device 20, with the shaded portions thereof formed along a path of predefined exposure on a background carrier, and the unshaded portions thereof formed next to an aperture in an associated foreground carrier. This would be done in such a fashion that these divided portions of an animal become assembled as a full outline of an animal when the associated foreground and background carriers are properly adjusted angularly relative to one another.

Still another possibility for the learning device of this invention, and thinking in terms of what has already been described with respect to FIGS. 1-8, inclusive, partial-learning-element units could be constructed to teach, for example, words in presented Braille. This possibility is indicated generally as a pattern of dots 49 in FIG. 4.

It will be understood that, while the invention has been described so far herein in the context of a manually-manipulable mechanical device, a modified embodiment of the invention could just as well be implemented in the realm of a digital computer, wherein a manually-manipulable virtual device, visually somewhat like device 20, could be presented on a computer-driven display screen, with a young learner provided an opportunity to manipulate and adjust this device through an appropriate user interface, such as a mouse, a keyboard, and/or a joystick. FIG. 10 in the drawings, in three blocks 50, 52, 54, illustrates this possibility. Block 50 represents an appropriate user interface for manipulating the operation of a digital computer therein (block 52), which computer drives the virtual operation on a display screen (block 54) of a hinged, virtual learning device (like device 20) shown generally at 56 in FIG. 10. Virtual learning device 56 is what is referred to herein as a virtual screen-display image, and also as a moving-parts computer display. Although not specifically shown in FIG. 10, plural-carrier virtual image 56 contains appropriate visual representations of partial-learning-element units which can be juxtaposed to create full-learning elements.

It will thus be apparent that the structure and system of the present invention, which are unique in the ways that learning manipulations may be performed by a device which allows for the selective combinations of incomplete learning units to form full learning units, also offers a unique learning methodology. This methodology may be described as a method including the steps of (a) furnishing a learner with a learner-manipulable device including at least one pair of associated, relatively shiftable, learning-information carriers armed with selectively and pre-definably juxtaposable, partial-learning-element units, different ones of which units, when brought into defined, paired juxtaposition relative to one another, collectively form a full-learning element, and (b) implementing an early-learning experience for a learner through encouraging that learner to produce and observe pluralities of such defined, paired juxtapositions which create full-learning elements. The methodology of the invention may also include, in addition to these two steps just mentioned, the additional provision of elements of mystery, surprise and entertainment regarding just what specific paired juxtaposition will next result through learner manipulation of the carrier.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that there are many variations and modifications which may be made in the specific details of implementation of both the structure and the methodology of this invention. We intend that all such variations and modifications will come within the scope of the now-following claims to invention. 

1. An early-learning system in the form of a manually learner-manipulable structure comprising at least one pair of adjacent, operatively associated, relatively shiftable, learning-information carriers organized, with respect to one another, as dedicated foreground and background carriers having a defined condition of permitted, relative-shifting motion, and visual, partial-learning-element units carried by each of said carriers, each unit which is carried by one of the carriers, through an act involving relative shifting of the two carriers, being combinable visually and selectively with at least one such unit which is carried by the other carrier, thus to form a visual, full-learning element.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein said foreground carrier is apertured to act as a shutter relative to said background carrier.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein said foreground carrier includes a single aperture which, with relative shifting of the two carriers, moves over a predefined path of exposure formed on said background carrier.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein said foreground carrier carries a single, partial learning-element aperture, said background carrier carries a plurality of different partial-learning-element background units distributed relative to each other in a spaced relationship along said path of exposure, and relative shifting of said carriers causes said aperture to expose said background units one-only at a time, with each such exposure creating a condition of juxtaposition between said foreground unit and one of said background units in a manner producing a visible full-learning element.
 5. The system of claim 3, wherein said carriers are generally parallel planar structures which are pivoted to one another, and said predefined path of exposure takes the form of an arc of a circle.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein each carrier is formed generally as a sector of a circle.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein each carrier sector is defined with a different radius.
 8. The system of claim 6 which includes plural pairs of associated carriers.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein said partial-leaming-element units and said full-leaming element reside in at last one of the fields including (a) visual vowel learning, (b) visual word and/or Braille learning, (c) visual Arabic-number and/or Braille-number leaming, (d) visual familiar-shape learning, (e) visual familiar-creature learning, and (f) visual familiar-object learning.
 10. The system of claim 1 which is fundamentally mechanical in nature.
 11. The system of claim 1 which is computer-based, and wherein said carriers, said units and said element take the forms of virtual, screen-display images that are created by a computer.
 12. An early-leaming method comprising furnishing a learner with a leamer-manipulable device including at least one pair of associated, relatively shiftable, leaming-information carriers armed with selectively and pre-definably juxtaposable, partial-leaming-element units, different ones of which units, when brought into defined, paired juxtaposition relative to one another, collectively form a full-leaming element, and encouraging an early-leaming experience for a learner through encouraging that learner to produce and observe pluralities of such defined, paired, juxtapositions, and the thereby-formed full-leaming elements.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein such a paired juxtapositions are not pre-evident evident until actually in existence, and said encouraging is carried out in a manner including, because of such lack of pre-evidence, the additional provision to a learner of elements of mystery, surprise and entertainment regarding just what specific paired juxtaposition will next result through learner manipulation of the carriers.
 14. The method of claim 12, wherein said furnishing takes the form of making a manually-manipulable, mechanical, moving-parts device available to a learner.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein said furnishing takes the forms of making a manipulable virtual moving-parts computer display screen available to a learner.
 16. The method of claim 12, wherein said furnishing is performed in a manner whereby the partial learning-element units and a full-learning element are presented in at least one of the worlds of (a) sighted vision, and (b) Braille. 